


Monster

by Lynds, Wolfloner



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Art, Blood Drinking, Collaboration, Depression, Dubious Consent, Dubious Morality, Emotional Manipulation, Fanart, Frostiron Minibang 2019, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, M/M, Not quite as dark as it sounds, Post-Thor (2011), Pre-Slash, Suicidal Thoughts, Vampires, of a non sexual nature
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-02-10 09:47:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,342
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18657958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lynds/pseuds/Lynds, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfloner/pseuds/Wolfloner
Summary: Hunting for his next meal, Tony finds something... else.





	Monster

**Author's Note:**

> Wolf:  
> *flails* I've never done something like this, but for the Mini-Bang that the FrostIron discord put together, the wonderful Lynds and I teamed up and created this lovely little thing. It was super duper fun collaborating like this, and I hope we get the chance to work together like this again.
> 
> See end notes for a link to the FrostIron Discord. Come say hi!

_It's hiding in the dark, it's teeth are razor sharp_  
_There's no escape for me, it wants my soul, it wants my heart_  
_No one can hear me scream, maybe it's just a dream_  
_Maybe it's inside of me, stop this monster_  
—Monster,  _Skillet_

 

It had been snowing for over a week. All of New York City had turned a murky gray as snow mixed with smog. For humans, Tony imagined, the air would be bitterly cold and nearly untenable. But he wasn't human, so the long black coat he wore was only for show. 

It paid to blend in with your prey when you were hunting, after all.

He ducked casually into a back alley after tonight’s intended prey had turned. It had been over a week since he had fed, and this morsel smelled too good to lose.

A cute little blonde with more brains than street smarts. What he was even doing out in the snow and ice was a mystery, but not one that Tony put much thought into. He was more interested in the clever soul that propelled the fragile body forward. 

Because Tony Stark was a vampire. Young, as far as vampires went, but he'd cottoned on to how things worked like a fish to water. When a vampire fed, they took on a spark from their food's soul. Hints of their character, their knowledge, and sometimes even some of their preferences. 

(Before he was turned, Tony was certain he'd never been partial to okra. But now, despite that fact that he couldn't benefit from ingesting them, he found himself seeking the vegetable out from time to time.)

There was less than half a block between them then. He could jump the fence and be right behind his target. Saliva and anticoagulants pooled in his mouth and coated his fangs. He crouched, tensing his muscles and—

— _ Something _ happened three streets south from his position. The noise was strange and not something he could place.

But someone, or  _ something _ , had appeared nearby, and it smelled far more interesting than the young man he'd been after.

Tony leapt the fence, and dropped a few feet away from his original prey, but paid him no mind. Instead he ran towards the new smell.

It didn't take him long to find the source tucked between two buildings. Tony was pretty sure it was a man. If he were standing, he might have been tall, but it was honestly hard to tell with the way that he was holding his body. He wasn't dressed for the cold, but it didn't look like he was suffering for it. 

Eventually the gaze of his sunken green eyes lifted up to meet Tony's. 

In that instant, Tony knew. He wasn't human. He looked human—at least the parts of him that Tony could see—but he smelled entirely wrong. The air around him tasted of something Tony couldn't name. He'd been all over the planet and had never encountered anything that came close.

But he could also taste the man's pain and desperation. 

“You're not human,” he accused, stepping closer to the curled up figure.

The man barked out a mirthless laugh. “You're not wrong,” he agreed. 

Tony realized that the man's eyes weren't quite focusing on anything. They were wide, as though he were frightened, but they seemed to be staring off into the middle distance.

“Are you an alien?”

His lips quirked down for a moment—the most expression Tony had seen from his so far. “I suppose I am.”

“But you speak English?”

“Sure,” he replied dismissively.

Tony took another cautious step closer. This alien could probably overpower him easily. He wasn't sure how he knew that, but something primal in the back of his mind screamed it. 

At his approach, the man finally looked him in the face. “You want to kill me.” 

It wasn't a question. It was just a statement of fact, filled with resignation.

“Yes,” Tony agreed. He did. He wanted to take this creature and tear into him and drink every last drop of him down. He had no idea what it would even do to him, but still, he wanted it.

The alien closed his eyes and deflated even further than Tony had thought possible. “Okay.”

Tony paused, conflicted.  _ Okay? _ He was just going to accept that fate? 

As much as he wanted to feed on him—and he hated the idea of turning down a free meal—something about killing him felt like a waste. 

Besides, he didn't like to eat depressed people, it tended to mess with his mood for days afterwards.

He straightened, sizing up the man before him again. He didn't look to be in the best shape. And with the weather, if he just left him here, he might just die anyway. Just because Tony had found him, that didn't make him his responsibility.

Except that Tony still  _ wanted _ . His mouth still watered at the promise of something so new and delicious smelling as the being offering himself up.

“Shit,” he grumbled, then a bit louder, “Ok, you're coming with me.”

“What?” The man blinked, looking confused. Maybe a spark of curiosity flared to life in his eyes, if only for a moment. Still, that was probably a good sign.

“You heard me. Get up.” Tony held his hand out towards him.

It was a moment before a cold thin hand reached out to take his, and allow Tony to pull him to his feet. 

He didn't really expect the man to run, but it was still strange how easily he allowed himself to be led back to Tony's home. 

“What is this place?” 

“Stark Tower.” Tony smiled at the other's expression. He was definitely curious now. 

“Are you Stark?”

“Yep. Stark, comma, Anthony. Or, Tony, if you'd prefer.” 

They walked through the lobby and boarded the elevator before the man spoke again.

“Loki.”

“Sorry?”

“You gave me your name, it is custom for me to give you mine.”

“Custom, huh? Well, it's good to meet you, Loki.”

“Is it?”

“So far.” He ushered Loki onto the couch and brought over a glass of water. 

Loki stared at the glass in his hand.

“It's just water, no poison or anything, I promise.”

“You said you wanted to kill me.”

Tony grinned, flashing his fangs. “Maybe, but I don't want to poison you first.” When Loki finally took a small sip, Tony spoke again. “I also have food. Pretty much anything you might want, really. Or, if I don't have it, I can probably get it easily.”

“I'm not hungry,” Loki said, taking a longer drink from the glass.

“Alright. Tell me if you change your mind.” He dropped into a chair across from Loki, doing his best to ignore the pang of hunger that pulsed from his gut. “In the meantime, what are you?”

“I don't know.”

“You don't… You're an alien, right? Where are you from?”

Loki shrugged, staring down at the glass between his fingers 

Tony sighed and leaned forward. “I could just  _ make _ you tell me.”

“So why don't you?”

“Because it's been a few days since I've eaten, and I don't feel like wasting my energy on that.”

“You just offered me food,” Loki sounded incredulous. And then understanding must have sunk in. “Oh. You're planning to eat me?”

Tony waved off the question. “Not important right now. Why are you so ok with dying?”

“Why do you care?”

“Because it's unusual. When I said I was going to kill you, you just… gave up. I've never seen that before. I want to know  _ why. _ ”

Loki finished the glass of water and set it down on the table between them. “Because everything about me is a lie.  _ Everything. _ My parentage, my birthrights, my  _ species, _ even.” He slumped forward in his seat. “I was a prince. A God. The God of Lies, they called me.” He let out a mirthless laugh. “Now I know why.”

“So, what are you instead?”

“I'm a monster. I'm the  _ thing  _ that we were taught to fear and despise our entire lives.”

Tony had to laugh at that, but not unkindly. “Welcome to the club. I'm a vampire. I feed off the life of others. I'm a killer and I feel no regret over there loss of life I cause.”

Loki tilted his head and mouthed,  _ Vampire? _

“So, c'mon. I showed you mine, you show me yours. What sort of monster are you?”

“I don't know how to show you.” It sounded like an admission. “They—we—are called Jötnar. Frost giants. Bestial killing machines. Thoughtless, godless brutes that relish in bloodshed.”

Tony leaned back and crossed his arms. “You don't seem particularly thoughtless to me.”

“What?”

“Not bestial, either. Although I don't know anything about your people, so maybe I'm biased. But you started by introducing yourself, which is pretty polite.” He looked Loki up and down again. The metal and leather he was wearing might be something made for battle, he supposed. But it looked too light to be intended for close combat. “So tell me then,  _ do you _ relish in bloodshed? Are you a killer?”

Loki swallowed. “I've killed before.”

“When?”

“In battle. Wars.”

“Did you enjoy it?”

He watched as Loki considered the question, pulling his lip between his teeth. “Yes. A little. But…”

“But?”

“Not as much as my brother. Or his friends.”

Tony hummed. “Are they Jötnar, too?”

“No!” Loki didn't shout, but after his subdued tone, the fervent way he spoke felt like shouting.

“So, what does that mean, then?” Tony asked, delighted by Loki's practical outburst.

“That I'm not like the Jötnar from the stories?” Loki ventured.

“It doesn't sound like it.”

Loki closed his eyes. “Are we done? Are you going to eat me now?”

“Is that what you want?”

“Why not? I'm not a God, not a proper Jötunn. What's the point of me?”

Tony scoffed. “There is no point, that's not how shit works. So what if you're not who you thought you were? You aren't what they want you to be, or what they think you should be, either. So just try being you.”

The  _ God?/Alien?/Jötunn?  _ looked even more defeated than before. “I don't know how,” he whispered. “All my life, all I've ever been is what others told me to be.”

Tony tapped his fingers on his arm while he thought. Killing Loki  _ really _ felt like it would be a waste now. He was an alien! A severely depressed alien, but still! Having Loki here opened up so many avenues for research…

“I'd like to propose a deal.”

“Pardon?”

“A deal. I'll help you figure out who and what you are. You're on a new planet and all, no one knows you here. You can reinvent yourself and be anything you like.”

Loki's eyes narrowed, but he looked interested. “Why? Why help me? What do you get out of it?”

“Smart man. I'm far from being altruistic here. I want to study you. I want to know what you are and how you work. Also, I want to feed off of you.”

“You want to turn me into a labrat and then kill me? Why bother reinventing myself at all?”

Tony rolled his eyes. “Don't get ahead of yourself. I'm not planning on killing you. If I have an easy source of food, I don't need to take very much at a time.”

Loki was chewing his lip again. “And if your efforts don't work? What then? What if I still want to die?”

Ever one who appreciated the dramatic, Tony stood and walked around the table so that he could lean down into Loki's personal space. 

“Then if you so wish it I'll sink my teeth into you and drain you dry. I'll savor every last drop of you, and part of you will live on in me forever.”

Loki's breath caught. Tony could smell the fear, but there was also something else. Excitement? 

“Yes,” he whispered.

Tony dropped to his knees before this alien who had been a God and pulled his arm towards him. “You _ did _ interrupt my hunt earlier,” he explained. “So I assume you won't mind if I correct that now?”

He could feel the way Loki's muscles tensed as he ran his fingers along his veins and arteries. Loki's mind might have been willing to die, but his body was still willing to fight or flee. He could smell the rush of instinctual fear. Good. Loki was his prey, after all.

“Are you frightened?” he asked, knowing the answer. He wanted to make Loki say it.

“No.” Loki sounded firm, and when Tony glanced up, he could see the way he'd set his face. Defiant. 

_ Interesting. _

He ran his tongue over the inside of Loki's wrist, giving the numbing agent a chance to do its job. 

When he bit down, Loki couldn't quite keep himself from letting out the briefest of noises. He hadn't intended the bite to be painful. Perhaps his saliva didn't work well with Loki's alien biology. That would be something he'd need to test.

He stopped thinking after he got the first taste of Loki's blood on his tongue. He closed his eyes and groaned, fixing his lips around the bite to make sure he didn't lose a single drop. 

It was… He didn't have a word to compare it to. Colder than a human's blood. Cold enough that took Tony a moment to taste the hints of apple and spices—like a chilled cider. Which was, frankly, bizarre. And delicious.

He didn't have to drink very much before he realized he was full. Loki let out the smallest whimper when he pulled away, and it made him smirk.

He realized that Loki's breath was heavier. When he looked back up, Loki’s pupils were dilated and he was panting slightly.  _ Oh! _ That sound hadn't been one of pain after all…

“Oh, yes. I think this arrangement is going to work out wonderfully for the both of us.”

**Author's Note:**

> [Frostiron Discord Channel](https://discord.gg/UYDkNYe)


End file.
